Jules Verne Trophy - Orange II - Geronimo - Cheyenne zur Übersicht Press Release N� 17 Paris, 26th February 2004 Jules Verne Trophy 2004 BRUNO PEYRON AND ORANGE II LEAVE FOR A NEW JULES VERNE ATTEMPT This morning at 9:01m43s French time (8:01m43s GMT), Orange II, skippered by Bruno Peyron, set out for a 27 000-mile long (theoretically, at least) round the world journey. The Créac'h lighthouse (Ushant Island), from which Claude Breton (WSSRC Chairman) started the clock, was left to port in a choppy sea, against the current, and with 17 knots (gusts to 25 kts) of north-north west wind. Bows pointing towards the sky, Orange II left for a new Jules Verne quest... The current record is held by the same Bruno Peyron, who sailed Orange I around the planet in 64 days, 8 hours, 37 minutes. In order to better his own benchmark time, the skipper must be back on the line before April 30th, at 18:38m07s. Countdown has begun! 'It's a beautiful start, under a beautiful light", said Bruno Peyron during the first audio chat session this morning. "We had around 10-15 knots of wind and a choppy sea, black skies and a few squalls. We even had a gust reaching 41 knots! We had one reef in the main and the staysail up at the time we started, and we replaced the staysail by the Solent jib.. We hoisted a bit more canvas up front... We're not going too fast at the moment, we're sailing at 22 knots but we'll pick up speed soon..." The wind is currently blowing from the north, but its strength is variable, depending on the squalls. Anticipation and quick reacting abilities are thus required for the first few hours at sea. "The wind should decrease in the middle of the Bay of Biscay, shifting before picking up again by the time we reach Cape Finisterre (north-western tip of Spain)", says Bruno Peyron commenting on the coming hours. "That's why we'll hoist the entire mainsail, rather than using the gennaker". Translated, this means that while gradually decreasing, the wind should shift slightly to the west in the middle of the Bay of Biscay, before freshening and coming back north around the Spanish cape, feared for its heavy seas. Bruno and his crew of 14 will use the whole 470 sq.m. mainsail while keeping the current foresail, the Solent jib. At 13:00 today, Orange II was 300 miles from Finisterre, and let's keep in mind the fact that last week, for her first day at sea, she had covered 635 miles in 24 hours� One can logically assume, given the boat's abilities and the weather conditions, that Orange II will be sailing off the Portuguese coast in 24 hrs. Bruno Peyron quotes : Watches... "The crew adopted the rhythm of the watches yesterday night after coffee! Seriously, it�s time to pack up some energy. If you look closely at the pictures taken when we set out, there are only 4 guys on deck!� Roger Nilson, navigator... "He's (Roger) already glued to his screens, or talking with our router... He did not even have dinner with us yesterday night, for our last meal ashore!" About Orange ... Orange France is a subsidiary of Orange SA, which includes all the Mobile Phone activities of the France Telecom Group. Orange France is the leading mobile phone operator with a market share exceeding 48,8%, and more than 20,3 millions of customers (December 31th 2003 figure). Maxi-catamaran Orange official suppliers : France Telecom Mobile Satellite Communications, TD Com Henri Lloyd, UKHO, Eduardo Valdéras, Nera SatCom, Telemar Sweden, International Peinture Marseilles, Official Port Copyright-free pictures (for press purposes) upon request : Gilles Martin-Raget +33/(0)6 07 55 45 85 - gmr@martin-raget.com Press Contact Maxi-Catamaran Orange : Bénédicte Etienne - C Sports Communication : +33/(0)6 87 30 12 83 - benedicte.etienne@csports.fr Pierre Giboire - Agence Mer & Média - pg.mer.media@wanadoo.fr Press Contact France Télécom / Orange : Sébastien Goalès - France Télécom : +33/(0)1 44 44 93 93 - sebastien.goales@francetelecom.com Marie-Cécile Leprat - C Sprts Communication : +33/(0)1 58 47 84 58 - mc.leprat@csports.fr Copyright © 1996-2004 - SEGEL.DE